A constitutional monarchy of North Africa, Morocco has coastlines on the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Area: 458,730 sq km (177,117 sq mi). Pop. (1993 est.): 26,494,000. (Area and population figures refer to Morocco as constituted prior to the purported division of Western Sahara between Morocco and Mauritania and the subsequent Moroccan occupation of the Mauritanian zone in 1979.) Cap.: Rabat. Monetary unit: dirham, with (Oct. 4, 1993) a free rate of 9.04 dirhams to U.S. $1 (13.70 dirhams = £1 sterling). King, Hassan II; prime minister in 1993, Mohamed Karim Lamrani.

The domestic scene in Morocco during 1993 was dominated by the parliamentary elections. The first round of the elections (for the 222 directly elected seats) took place on June 25 and resulted in a win for the left-wing Socialist Union of Populist Forces (USFP), which obtained 48 seats. The Democratic Bloc, an alliance of the USFP, the Independence Party (Istiqlal), the Party of Progress and Socialism, and the Organization for Democratic and Popular Action, won 99 of the 222 seats. The remainder were largely captured by the five loyalist parties. (For tabulation results, see Political Parties, above.) In the indirect elections for the remaining 111 seats, held on September 17, the loyalist parties radically improved their position, with the USFP picking up only four additional seats. The USFP was still expected to form a new government.

In early October, however, the USFP announced that it would not form a government, apparently because the party perceived that it either would have to form a coalition or would be a minority government. Furthermore, the USFP leader, ’Abd ar-Rahman al-Yousifi, resigned his post as a protest against electoral fraud. Relations with the Royal Palace were strained as a result. The new government was eventually drawn from the ranks of the loyalist parties, thus signaling that Morocco was ultimately concerned about political continuity rather than radical experiment. Continuity was also emphasized by the opening of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca--the largest in the world outside Saudi Arabia--at an estimated cost of $500 million.

Despite problems created by a poor harvest (with consequent declines in economic growth and increases in imports and the current account deficit), Morocco continued to attract international attention as a good investment risk. Receipts from the privatization program exceeded the $214 million target figure as the first large-scale foreign purchases began.

The Western Sahara issue continued to dominate foreign affairs, especially as Morocco’s relations with Algeria remained strained. The Polisario Front demonstrated its continued fighting ability with a military parade in Tindouf on May 20 and its willingness to negotiate during meetings in El Aaiun with Moroccan officials over procedures for the planned referendum. The major problem continued to be the voting lists to be used, with the Polisario Front insisting on the 1974 Spanish census of the Western Sahara as the guide and Morocco demanding inclusion of an additional 120,000 Sahrawis, who they said had been forced out of the territory by Spain. The UN, which was providing a monitoring force, MINURSO, tried to revive negotiations with a visit by Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali in June and later announced preparations for a new census. George Joffé